28 Lokis and a Thor
by I'vebeenLOKI'Dyetagain
Summary: Post-Avengers, Loki is in prison in Asgard, and, of course, Odin is very, very angry. He tries to cast a spell on Loki so that he must show his emotions, but it goes horribly wrong. And then, as if matters couldn't get any worse, Thor's hammer gets stolen. So you end up with 28 Lokis and a Thor, all dressed in drag. Inspired by a picture by Yuuram93 on DeviantART, and Norse myths.


**This story is inspired by the ADORABLE picture _28 Lokis and a Thor _drawn by Yuuram93 on DeviantART and this prompt: "[...]what it would be like if a spell goes wrong and loki's clones ended up as different personalities of himself. like a clingy loki, a grumply loki, an emo loki, etc. lol the thought of thor having to deal with all those would just be hilarious! you big oaf" **

**She gave me her permission both to write this and to use her picture as the cover. However, that cropped little rectangle up there does not do her beautiful drawing justice. At all. (The original picture actually has 28 Lokis... that up there has, what, 11?) To see her picture in its full glory, you can find the link on my profile page :) Which I _highly _suggest you do. **

**I would like to thank her for her amazing and inspiring work. And also my sister, FrostedFangirl7413, for checking this story for typos, and for her support (which consisted of much 'You are so silly!')  
**

**Part of this is also inspired by the Norse myth, _The Theft of Thor's Hammer_.**

**DISCLAIMER: I do not own the characters, nor the mythology, nor do I own the lovely picture. And I never will. **

**I hope you enjoy!**

* * *

Loki pinned Odin to the wall with his stare as effectively as he would if a dagger, had his hands not been shackled; as effectively as he would with his words had his mouth not been muzzled.

His stare was cold and metallic, glinting. A mirror. And all Odin could see in them was his own furious reflection.

"Do you have nothing to say for yourself?" the Allfather interrogated.

What his point was, Loki wasn't sure, since he couldn't very well have answered even if he'd wanted to.

So he didn't even blink. He sat stiffly on the bed in his Asgardian cell and stared coldly at Thor and Odin, who were inside with him as well, Thor leaning against one of the glass walls while Odin paced, his footsteps clomping loudly in the small chamber.

"Your trial will be soon," Odin continued, "And if you want to get out of it with anything less than an execution you're going to have to show some emotion, show that you actually feel something and are not cold and heartless."

Loki's face remained blank and completely expressionless.

"Would you quit that dumb insolence!" Odin bellows finally, completely losing his cool. "If you will not willingly show emotion, I will force you to!"

"Father—" Thor says, pushing himself off the wall and beginning to walk forward, hoping to mollify the situation.

"HURRRGGGGHHHH!" Odin roars, pointing his finger at Thor and ordering him to be silenced in a most uneloquent fashion.

Odin sent a spell at Loki, which the God of Mischief deflected easily.

Loki blinked, that was it, and Odin was sent reeling backwards as his spell ricocheted into the ceiling, just barely missing his face.

"But—those cuffs!" Odin spluttered. "You shouldn't be able to do magic!"

Loki let his lips twitch the smallest bit behind the muzzle.

Enraged, Odin sent wave upon wave of his magic at Loki, Thor watching with wide eyes.

"Father, STOP!" Thor warned.

Odin didn't listen. Loki kept finding himself more and more glad he wasn't the Allfather's son, and thus didn't inherit such stubborn thickheadedness, among other attributes he considered unfavorable.

Sweat beaded on Loki's brow as he held off the barrage of power, but that was the only sign he showed of his struggle.

He was far more learned in magic than the Allfather was; he was the best in Asgard as far as skill and talent went, possibly even the best of the Nine Realms.

He possessed finesse on a level hat nobody could possibly hope to match.

But when it came to sheer, overwhelming power?

Being the Allfather did have its advantages apparently.

Thor tried to rush between them, or to either one of them, but was blown backwards each time he tried.

Loki's straight posture cracked and he bent forwards, clutching his stomach as if he was going to be retch.

He was quickly analyzing Odin's spell and picking at it, trying to untangle it to uselessness.

Loki was just getting to where he thought he had it, when the Allfather sent one more huge blast of magic, knocking through Loki's defenses and catching him off guard, reacting his instinctual reflexes.

There was a blinding flash of white light, and Odin was flung into the glass, sliding to the floor.

There was a moment of complete silence as the world seemed to stand still.

"Um, Father?" Thor said hesitantly.

Odin pushed himself to his feet and looked up. His jaw dropped.

The entire cell was completely full of Lokis—they were on the bed, on the floor, sitting on Thor's shoulders and hanging from the ceiling by their fingernails.

"Not quite what you were aiming for, was it?" one of the Lokis said, the one that was pressed into a corner with one of his other selves hugging his legs. "And you had enough trouble with just one of me. Now how in the Nine Realms are you going to deal with twenty-eight?"

* * *

The first thing Odin did (or rather attempted to do) was get all the Lokis out of the cell, because that many Gods of Mischief in such close quarters did not bode well. For anybody.

As soon as the door opened, Lokis raced, stormed, walked, crept, shuffled and sauntered out, leaving a few hanging on to Thor and a few hanging behind in the cell.

Thor noticed that though they were all Loki and were wearing the same leather armor, they were all different.

There were Lokis he recognized from their childhood, with their large green eyes that filled their faces, their hair soft and curling at the napes of their necks, their bodies small and seeming so terribly fragile.

There were Lokis he recognized from their adolescence, long limbed and lanky, dark hair falling into their faces and obscuring their bright green eyes.

There were adult Lokis from before his fall, willowy and lean muscled, their hair short and slicked back, skin pale but unblemished.

And there were Lokis from after his fall, eyes shimmering blue, cheek bones so sharp as to be nearly cutting through their skin, long hair slicked back and hiding their pale necks, wild tendrils of it falling out of place.

Thor didn't know what to make of it. (Especially the fact that over half the Loki's were either children or teens)

Unfortunately for him, Loki did.

"Brother, pick me up!" a little Loki begged, tugging on the Thunderer's sleeve. "I want to sit on your shoulders!"

A young Loki that remained in the cell curled up in the corner, sobbing silently, tears spilling down his face as he didn't bother to try to wipe them away.

"ODIN YOU IDIOT!" another Loki screamed, teeth bared and eyes wild. "LOOK WHAT YOU DID! Don't you see what you've done to me?! What you've made of me?!"

"I..." Odin stuttered, his kingly aura cracking as he realized the situation was far beyond his ability to control.

"I WILL BE YOUR END!" Loki shouted. He would have attacked the Allfather had one of the other Loki's not been holding him back.

"Does somebody have that muzzle?" the Loki asked, sending an exasperated glare at the shrieking Loki he was holding around the waist. "Or the shackles or something?"

"Thor," a young Loki asked, having attached himself to the thunder god's leg. He looked up at Thor, green eyes wide and eyebrows pulled together slightly. "What's going on? Brother, what's wrong with me?"

Odin couldn't stand it any longer. "THAT'S IT!" he cried, throwing his hands up. "Thor, you watch your brothers—"

"I AM NOT THOR'S BROTHER!"

"While I go try to find a spell to reverse this mess," Odin finished, avoiding the glares of several of the Lokis. He somehow managed to exit the dungeons without any Loki's escaping (around half of them were surrounding and holding on to Thor) and ordered more guards to protect the doors.

"He won't find a reversal spell," one of the Loki's said quietly, sitting with his back against the wall, a long arm slung lazily around his knees.

"Er..." Thor said, lifting an arm with a Loki hanging on to it.

The Loki giggled, swinging up his legs as well, and then hanging from Thor's arms by his knees.

"How exactly does Father expect me to do that?"

"He doesn't," a Loki answered, leaning against the stone wall, arms crossed and a crooked smile twisting at his lips.

The one Loki was still shouting, even with Odin gone (though Thor noticed with some satisfaction that the Loki wasn't screaming at _him,) _and as soon as the Loki holding him back let him go he tore at his hair, screaming at himself now, before punching the stone wall repeatedly, as if to see whether it or his knuckles would break first.

A little Loki that had been hiding behind Thor's legs looked up, screaming at the sight of himself, eyes widening in terror as he tried to run away, only to find nowhere to go.

Every corner of the dungeon already taken up by himself, the small Loki clambered up the stone wall and curled himself up on the window ledge, pressing his face against his knees.

"So, how was Asgard in my absence?" a Loki said casually, standing next to Thor. "How pleased was everyone that I was gone?"

"Loki, we mourned for you," Thor said, "Don't think that you didn't matter to us!"

"_Didn't?" _Loki raised his eyebrows, and Thor cursed himself for his blunder.

"Don't think that you don't matter to us!" he corrected himself.

Loki sighed. "You can't lie to me, Thor. You should know I can always tell."

He walked away, and Thor clutched the Lokis in his arms tighter, feeling his heart sink.

One of the Lokis, looking to be about in his teen years, paced around the dungeons as if looking for something. Finally he came back and entered the cell he'd previously been locked in. He snatched a book from the table and then promptly exited, sitting on one of the adult Loki's laps, who absentmindedly played with his boy self's hair.

"Thor, Thor!" a young Loki exclaimed, jumping up and down.

"What is it, Brother?" Thor asked, as a Loki in his arms buried his face into Thor's hair, giggling and grinning.

"I—" the Loki started, before something glimmered in the corners of his eye. He turned his head, his eyes lighting up once again as he sprinted away.

"Ooh, look what I found!" He said, holding up a pair of bronze keys.

"Loki—" Thor started warningly, but the Loki had already dropped the keys and run over to the other side of the dungeon and picked up a sword that a guard had left behind, cackling to himself.

Thor groaned, as another Loki picked up the keys, smiling mischievously.

"Loki _don't,_" he warned.

"Don't worry brother," an adult Loki said, blue eyes glinting as he sauntered over and put a hand on Thor's shoulder, brushing his lips against Thor's ear, his breath warm. "I just like messing with you."

"Loki!" Thor said indignantly, pulling away and glaring at his smirking brother.

The Loki just shrugged his shoulders gracefully, making a show of examining his fingernails.

The Loki that was sitting on his shoulders started braiding his long blond hair.

Thor cast his eyes around at all the Lokis, frowning slightly, before asking "How many of you did you say there was again?"

"Twenty-eight," Loki answered, grinning wolfishly. "Missing someone? I didn't think you could count."

Thor pouted at him.

He turned in a circle, careful not to step on the Lokis that were either clinging to his feet or hugging his waist, drop the two that were in his arms, or knock the one on his shoulders off balance.

_Twenty-seven..._ he furrowed his brow, before counting again to make sure.

There were the eight that were hanging on him, the one that was curled up on the window ledge and another trying to coax him down, one was running around the chamber investigating everything that caught his eye (mostly shiny things,) two Lokis had taken up sparring with the swords that had been found, two Lokis were playing a conjured-up chess game, the one Loki that had been punching the wall was no clawing at himself and drawing bloody gashes (Thor winced, but as much as it pained him to see Loki harming himself he had the distinct feeling that there was nothing he could do at the moment,) a Loki that was sitting in the corner with watery eyes and a hand covering his mouth, a Loki that was pacing the length of the chamber restlessly with his hands clasped behind his back, three Lokis that were standing in another corner of the room and having a heated argument, a Loki that was sitting against the wall with another Loki reading on his lap, one Loki that was sneering as he stared around the chamber, a Loki that was lying on the ground and staring up at the ceiling, a Loki that was snickering darkly and smirking to himself, another Loki that was standing in the shadows and just watching everything with a calculating interest...

"BOO!"

Thor nearly jumped out of his skin as a Loki that had snuck up on him from behind pounced in front of him and shouted, sending seven Lokis scattering from Thor like the Midgardians' fireworks, the Loki that was sitting on his shoulders falling forward over Thor's head and hanging from around his neck.

"You've been Loki'd!" the teen whooped, his smile lighting up his green eyes so that they shone from behind his dark sidebangs.

"LOKI'D!"

Thor laughed, taking the Loki under an arm and ruffling his hair, the other Lokis gravitating back towards him again.

Oh how Thor had missed seeing these sides of his little brother.

* * *

Odin came back in the middle of the night, having spent all day in the Library and still found no way to reverse the spell, and that along with the Loki problem something _else _had happened.

And Thor needed to hear about it.

As soon as he entered the chamber, however, he stopped, raising his eyebrow as his mouth fell open.

In the center of the room was Thor.

Thor, lying in a huge puppy pile of Lokis.

Odin blinked, sure his sight was finally failing him.

But nope. Thor was fast asleep, all twenty-eight Lokis snuggled around him, using either him or each other for pillows.

One of the Lokis opened his blue eyes and glared at the Allfather, lips pulling into a snarl that tore open the gashes on his face

Needless to say Odin left hurriedly.

* * *

Thor woke up surrounded by warmth, and feeling distinctly happier than he could remember feeling in a while.

Opening his bleary eyes, he was confused for a few moments when he found himself in a pile of Lokis, before he cracked a huge grin.

He'd almost forgotten how unbearably _adorable _his brother could be.

One of the smallest Lokis was curled up on his chest much like a cat, and many more were sprawled across his legs and using his him as a pillow.

His own head was resting on an adult Loki's chest, who looked like he had been awake for a while but hadn't wanted to disturb his big brother by moving. He was stroking Thor's braided hair absentmindedly, and when he saw Thor looking at him he smiled softly.

"Good morning, Thor. Sleep well?"

Thor nodded, still grinning. "You?" he inquired.

"Sort of," the Loki answered.

"Sort of?" Thor asked, furrowing his brow. He gently pushed himself into a sitting position, careful not to wake the still sleeping Lokis. Many of them were already awake, however, and though most of them still seemed content to lie there and relax, a few of the older Lokis had gotten up and were pacing the chamber.

"There are many of myself, after all," the Loki pointed out, standing up and stretching. "I think it's safe to say that it would be impossible for all of us to sleep soundly."

Thor's frown deepened, and the Loki laughed lightly. "But just so you know, this has been the most comfortable rest Loki has gotten in a while."

"Is this..." Thor gestured around at all the Lokis, "Disconcerting?"

"More so than you could imagine."

A blue-eyed Loki watched Thor from the corner of room, scars from him clawing himself starkly visible against his pale skin. "Odin came here in the middle of the night," he growled.

"He what?" Thor asked, confused. Though the thunderer was trying to whisper, his voice still seemed to boom in the chamber, and more and more Lokis began to stir.

The one who had been curled up on Thor's chest but was now lying in his lap yawned, rubbing his fists against his eyes, before looking up at Thor.

A beam broke across his face like the sun at dawn, and he jumped up and threw his arms around Thor's neck.

Thor chuckled, wrapping an arm around the child and ruffling his hair.

Remembering Loki trying to take over Midgard, and then in the cell before Odin's spell had separated him into his different emotions, sitting there coldly with no expression on his face and gracing Thor with only an occasional glare or sneer... Thor would never have expected Loki to still have this much _affection _for him.

Even the darkest Lokis seemed to mollify in his company, and Thor thought his heart would burst with joy at the knowledge that he hadn't yet lost Loki's love.

Why did Loki hide it?

An adult Loki seemed to read Thor's mind and snorted. "You never have been good at hiding your feelings, especially your joy and ire," the Loki mused coolly, a corner of his lips curving upwards to reveal white teeth. "But surely you've tried to hide your hurt and your pain, especially from your enemies. Why do you do this?"

Thor bit his lip, saying hesitantly "So that they can't use my weakness against me."

Loki gave Thor a pointed stare.

Thor opened his mouth to say something, but suddenly over half of the Lokis all turned jerked their heads to look at the dungeon door, like they'd all sensed or hear something.

Thor followed their stares.

There were a few moments of silence where nothing happened, and then suddenly the dungeon doors were thrown open and a messenger stepped inside.

(The Lokis all shared devious glances)

"The Allfather demands Thor's presence—"

Over half the Lokis suddenly leaped up and charged him.

"WHAT IN ASGARD?!" the messenger yelped in alarm, turning around and running the opposite direction, the guards that had been stationed outside the door abandoning post as well. "WE HAVE AN ESCAPTED PRISONER! OR RATHER, PRIOSONER_S!"_

The Lokis didn't give chase, simply stopped in the doorway, cackling, laughing, smirking and whooping.

"_Loki," _Thor started to chide, but the image of the messenger and the guards' eyes widening in fear as he saw all the Lokis stampeding him, and the way he'd bolted—Thor couldn't help but smile and shake his head.

"Alright well," Thor said, standing up, "I should probably go see what Father wants."

The Lokis sobered immediately.

"And what, are you just going to leave all of us here?" a teen Loki asked, raising an eyebrow. "I'm sure that would go well..."

Several younger Lokis ran over to Thor and clung to him tightly.

"On the contrary, I'm bring you all with me!" Thor grinned.

"If you really expect me to put up with that lying murderer you fools call _King_," the scarred Loki snarled, "Than you are sadly mistaken!"

"Nobody expects you to do anything," Thor said, raising his hands placidly. "I think some of yourselves are definitely coming with me," Thor gestured to the Lokis that were attached to him, "But you can stay in the dungeons if you wish."

The Loki growled, but didn't say anything.

"Now, who's ready to go give the Allfather a heart attack?" Thor grinned.

A significant majority of the Lokis raised their hands.

* * *

"Now, behave yourselves and don't run off, or I will make all of you hold hands and form a chain," Thor threatened lightly, eying several Lokis who looked suspicious.

"I am not a _child_, Thor," an adult Loki said, glaring.

"Some of you are," Thor pointed out with a shrug and a smug smile.

Another teen Loki groaned, letting his face fall into his hands. "You really are enjoying this, aren't you Brother?"

"...Maybe."

"I swear, if you _ever _mock me about this or try to use it against me," a Loki said, blue eyes glinting dangerously, "I will personally murder you."

* * *

"My sons!" Frigga exclaimed, rushing forward as soon as the doors to the throne room swung open heavily upon their hinges.

She stopped, her mouth parting in surprise.

"_Odin," _she ground out, "_What_ did you not see fit to _tell me?"_

"I was hoping the situation would already have been fixed," Odin admitted gruffly, his voice nearly drying up as several of the Lokis glared at him.

"Mother!" a young Loki said, unlatching himself from Thor and running over to her, wrapping his arms around her waist and smiling up at her.

She blinked at him, before her face broke into a grin and she ruffled his hair. She cast her gaze around and smiled at all the Lokis.

"But really, what happened?" Frigga asked, eyebrows furrowing slightly in concern.

"Long story short—" one Loki started, before getting interrupted by one of himselves.

"—It was Father's fault."

"I was getting under his skin by not reacting—"

"—But he wanted to bear witness to my pain so he cast a spell, which produced the desired effect—" "—Though not quite as he'd hoped." yet another Loki finished, looking at Odin challengingly.

Frigga turned and narrowed her eyes at her husband, mouth pulled into a displeased frown.

"Don't try to deny it, _Father,_"a Loki said, spitting out the last word like it was bilgesnipe meat (which even a Volstagg who hasn't eaten since the dinner the previous day wouldn't eat.) He crossed his arms, lifting his chin slightly, as the other Lokis either hugged Thor, fixed the leather straps on their armor, or tried to light Odin's beard on fire with their glowers.

"You should know I can always tell a lie. And Mother knows you too well."

The room lapsed into an awkward silence, a Loki or two smirking as the occupants of the room who were not Loki squirmed.

"So..." Thor hedged, picking up a Loki that had been tugging on his cape insistently for the past ten minutes. "Why did you summon me?"

Odin sighed. "Mjolnir has been stolen."  
"WHAT?!" Thor thundered, causing the Loki in Thor's arms to cover his ears.

Thor stuck his hand out as he tried to call his hammer to him. Nothing happened.

"It wasn't me!" a teenager Loki said immediately as he raised his empty palms and took a step back. "It wasn't Loki!"

"Yeah, I—we—were too busy making sure Thor didn't sneak off during the night to Sif's bed chambers," another Loki added, winking at Frigga as Thor flushed. "But don't worry, we had him under tight surveillance."

"HOW CAN YOU JOKE AT A TIME LIKE THIS?!" Thor bellowed furiously. The Loki he'd been holding hurriedly clambered out of Thor's arms, leaping to the floor and running over to hug himself instead.

Thor had the grace to look slightly apologetic, before he rounded on Odin.

"How did this happen?!" he demanded, eyes flashing.

"Not even Heimdall knows," Odin replied gravely. "Mjolnir was in the weapon's vault where you left it yesterday morning, and come even it was missing."

"But I am the only one who can wield Mjolnir!" Thor protested, clearly at a loss. "How could it be stolen?!"

"You're not the only being who can lift your hammer," a Loki said, a smug smile creeping across his lips as Thor whirled around to glower at him.

"Tell me what you mean by that," Thor growled.

Loki kept his gaze on his hand as he clenched it into a fist, before opening it up finger by finger like a flower blooming, flexing his delicate fingers as he watched the dust in the air swirl around them, smirk growing larger by the moment. "I saw your Captain of Midgard playing with it when you weren't looking."

"STEVE?!" Thor bellowed, "YOU'RE SUGGESTING MY FRIEND STEVE DID THIS?!"

"Not at all," the Loki said, lifting his eyebrows. "I was simply quashing your hubris before it could make your head explode."

"_LOKI," _Thor growled warningly, taking a step towards the trickster.

"Whatever did I do?" a Loki asked Thor, shaking the black hair out of his face as his eyebrows came together. "Why are you yelling at _me? _I haven't done anything!"

Thor looked at the young Loki, his expression mollifying ever so slightly. "I am sorry, Brother," he said. "But then, since it wasn't the Captain, who took it?"

"If you would allow me," a Loki offered, stepping forward. His green eyes glinted, and Thor marveled at the fact that he could actually _see _a plan forming there, the calculations ticking in the jade orbs faster than a rabbit's heart. "I could travel to Jotunheim to see if it was one of the Frost Giants."

"I'm not sure that's a good idea—" Odin started.

"And you have a better one, I presume?" another Loki asked, while holding back one his other selves who was hissing and spitting.

"_Bastard!" t_he Loki snarled, fingernails looking dangerously long as he clawed at the air before the Allfather's face. "Who do you think you are to tell me what I can and cannot do? What is a good idea and what is not? _You're the one who took me from Jotunheim in the first place! _And who's regretting that lapse of judgment now?"

"Loki!" Thor cried, aghast. "How can you say that?!"

"I can say anything I damn well please!" the Loki snapped, now clutched around the waist and being restrained by two of his other selves. "What are you going to do, _muzzle _me? _Sew my lips shut?" _

Hurt was plain in Frigga's face as she listened to her son, her hands fluttering to her mouth. "Oh Loki," she cried, rushing forward and hugging the struggling god.

He froze, one of the other Loki's widening his eyes, jaw slacking. "What are you doing?" he asked, as Frigga reached up and wiped the blood from her son's brow, tears glistening in her eyes.

Another Loki came up and put a hand on her shoulder, squeezing gently. "Please don't cry, Mother," he murmured.

"Well, if that's that," a blue-eyed Loki cut in sharply. "I will take it as a go ahead."

And with that, the Loki turned himself into a falcon, black feathers glimmering rainbow as he darted through the window, shattering the sunlight for a brief moment.

Then he was gone.

* * *

The Loki flew towards the forest, before making a sharp turn that slashed a gap just large enough for him to slip his slender feathered body through into the ether.

A moment of darkness that streamed over his wings and left stars in his contrail.

And then he was surrounded by blinding whites and blues, the ice below reflecting the sky above, both dim in pallor.

His wingbeats sent him slicing through the frigid air towards the castle, his shadow on the ground far less visible than he was.

He circled the throne chamber once, before alighting upon the edge of the throne, staring down with icy green-blue eyes at the Jotun sitting there.

"You are no falcon," the Frost Giant said, turning his head to stare at the disguised Loki intently, his red eyes narrowing.

"I am as much a falcon as you are King of Jotunheim, Thrym," the Loki quipped, fluttering his wings slightly.

Thrym frowned as he tried to ponder what the bird meant by this, before it spoke again.

"You took Thor's hammer."

The Jotun smirked triumphantly. "Yes, I did. I snuck into the weapon's vault, used my magic to dampen the spell that binds it to Thor, and I've hidden it eight miles underground. The Asgardians will never find it."

The falcon cocked his head to the side. "I take it you are looking for a bargain," he said, carving lines into the ice with his talons.

Thrym nodded. "I will return Mjolnir only if Asgard gives me the lovely Freyja to be my wife," the Jotun said, no possibility of a compromise in his voice. "Tomorrow. Else Jotunheim declares war."

He laughed as the falcon took off.

* * *

With one arm Thor held onto the Loki that was still raging furiously, threatening the downfall of Asgard, while in the other he held a small Loki that was clinging to him, eyes wide in terror.

At least he wasn't screaming anymore, like he'd been doing before Thor had picked him up.

Since the one Loki left, Thor had noticed the bright, smiling Lokis faltering, while Lokis darker selves seemed to grow darker still, a blood had been dripping down more than one pale face.

After Odin had been forced to leave, the situation had mollified slightly.

Frigga was doing her best to calm the Lokis down as well: currently she was talking soothingly to a small Loki who had buried his face in her skirts, soaking them with tears.

Suddenly a few of the Lokis looked up, a grin spreading across one of their faces.

"I knew it!" the Loki whooped, as a black falcon swooped in through the window.

The falcon hovered in the center of the hall for a moment, before Loki seemed to fold out of the air, black feathers falling from his black hair.

"Well?" Thor asked, the adult Loki he'd been holding back now quieting.

"Thrym stole your hammer, and he's hidden it eight miles underground." the Loki answered, brushing some feathers from his shoulder.

"How did this Thrym steal my hammer?!" Thor demanded, the hissing Loki he'd been holding scratching him until Thor finally let him go.

"He used a dampening spell on it, one that temporarily smothers the magic which allows you to both summon it and be the only one to lift it," the Loki answered confidently. "However, such a charm is temporary, and Thrym is not intensively powerful: he used up all his magic on the spell. He will return it only if Freyja is given to him for his wife."

"Oh, Freyja will _love _to hear this," one of the Lokis drawled. "That she's a bargaining chip—again_. _She'll be truly _flattered_."

"We are NOT giving up Freyja!" Thor cried, vehement, ire beginning to storm behind his eyes.

"Of course not," a teen Loki said, mischievous smile spreading across his face, green glittering flamelike in his eyes. "That's why we'll dress _you _up as a bride in her stead."

"We'll WHAT?!" Thor said, nearly dropping the Loki in his arms, who whimpered.

"Why, we'll put you in a dress and cover your face with a veil, and Thrym—having only heard rumor of Freyja's beauty and never having seen her—won't know the difference. And then when they bring out Mjolnir to bind your marriage, you take it up and swing it into Thrym's head before he even knows what hit him," the Loki said, grinning all the more as Thor flushed at the idea of dressing as a bride.

"Unless you have a better idea," he added, lifting an eyebrow.

Thor grumbled inaudibly, which Loki took to mean he didn't.

"Of course, I will come with you as your bride's maids and flower girls—"

"ALL of you?!" Thor said, his shoulders tensing.

"Well yes," another Loki smirked. "You saw what happened when even just one of us was separated. We are all connected, after all. We're not separate Lokis: we're different parts_ of_ _Loki_. "

"And you know you need us—me—there," the teen continued. "You'll need wits and words; brawn will do you no good until you're reunited with you lovely hammer."

"I think it's a wonderful idea!" Frigga said, giggling as Thor glared at her. "I'll go find you a wedding dress!"

* * *

The next morning Frigga smiled, standing back to admire her handiwork. "You all look gorgeous," she said.

Thor tugged at the golden gown uncomfortably that Frigga had modified to fit his muscular frame, a gossamer yet opaque veil hiding his face and beard.

He was bedecked with so much golden and gem jewelery he practically glittered, as well as borrowing Freyja's prized necklace, Brsingamen (Freyja had been quite into the whole plan, and had even helped Frigga with Thor's outfit, giggling all the while.)

"A joke's a joke, Loki. But no giant would ever be fooled by this," Thor said darkly.

"I don't know," said an adult Loki, swaggering over to him, dark green skirt swaying about her feet. "In a half-light, you look very fetching. I could marry you myself." And with that Loki lifted Thor's veil and kissed his cheek, smiling as Thor blushed furiously.

"Stop that," he said, raising a finger and pointing it at the Loki warningly.

Loki laughed, voice a couple octaves higher than normal.

All the Lokis were wearing a similar green dress that made the color of their eyes practically pop, and they had slender gold circlets around their heads.

All the adult and teen Lokis had shapeshifted into females, their sharp features now even more delicate, black hair lengthened so that it swayed at their mid backs and curled around their feminine figures, while the kiddie Lokis only had to dress in drag and they looked like girls.

"Won't the Jotuns notice that you all look the same?" Thor asked one of the Lokis.

"We'll just say we're sisters," she answered. "For all the Jotuns know, Asgardian siblings could look exactly the same, even if they aren't all twins. Not that it even matters that much—can you tell much difference between all the Jotuns? We aren't familiar with them and they aren't familiar with us, so we could all look the same for all they care," the Loki pointed out.

"Right," Thor said, "Now let's get to Jotunheim before most of Asgard awakes. I don't fancy anyone seeing me like this."

* * *

"Good kitty," one of the little Lokis whispered, stroking one of the Freyja's gray cats that had pulled the chariot from the bifrost site to the castle of Jotunheim. "When we get back to Asgard, I'll make sure you get the very best fish. How does that sound?"

The large cat purred, rubbing its head against the Loki and nearly knocking him over.

Loki giggled.

"Come now," one of the older Lokis said, grabbing the youngster's arm and pulling him away pouting.

"I am suddenly not so sure about this plan," Thor mumbled, his dress leaving soft flowing tracks in the thin covering of snowflakes that coated the ice like frosting on a cake.

"Were you ever sure about it?" one of the adult Lokis quipped, rolling her green eyes, at the same time another Loki smiled "Trust me, Thor. It will work."

Yet another said, "If it makes you feel any better, I'm not sure about it either."

"I wish you would stop talking all at once," Thor said, probably glaring beneath the veil.

"Don't speak. The plan will be ruined otherwise. Henceforward, I will do all the talking."

Thor sighed.

One of the Lokis rammed his bony elbow into Thor's ribs, saying "Don't walk like _that, _Brother. You're walking like an angry thug. You have to walk with the grace of a _lady." _

Loki then demonstrated, gliding across the ice, her hips swaying slightly.

She angled her slender neck to look back over her shoulder, sending Thor a teasing smile.

Thor groaned.

"I always wondered what it would be like to be part of a wedding," a young Loki smiled as he held one his teen selves' hands. "Do you think Thor will marry Lady Jane, and I can go to their wedding too?"

"I'm sure Thor will _beg_ you to attend his next wedding," the teen smiled. "And if you're lucky, he'll even ask you to be flower girl again."

"Would you all _shut up_," a Loki snapped irritably, rubbing at the glamor that hid her scars. "It's bad enough I'll have to be talking to other Frost Giants, much less myself as well!"

"Did she mean that?" the a little Loki asked, biting his lip, eyebrows furrowing every so slightly.

Another Loki shrugged. "Who knows with Loki?"

"Okay, we're going to be entering the hall of the King of Jotunheim," a Loki said, sending everyone—himselves, herselves, and Thor included—a stiff glare. "So now that there will Jotuns within a proximity to hear us, and not just spying on us from a distance, I need you all to stop bickering so we actually make it out of this alive, thank you very much. Just pay attention to the task at hand."

They entered the hall.

* * *

King Thrym had easily believed that Thor dressed in drag was Freyja.

When he voiced uncertainty at the fact that he could not see her (his) face because of the veil, a Loki had simply said "Oh do not fear: when you see her, you will see that Freyja is even far more beautiful than I am," and had fluttered her dark eyelashes and laughed lightly, the sound like the twinkling of stars, and flipped her midnight hair over a shoulder so that it splashed along her pale arm like a waterfall.

Obviously, Thrym had completely fallen for it.

He had also eaten the story that Freyja needed to bring all her ladies in waiting to be her bride's maids and flower girls, the little Lokis holding baskets of yellow lilies—Freyja is a woman of style and extravagance, after all. Her wedding should thus be so.

The other Jotuns, truly, could care less about the wedding. It was just an excuse for a feast.

They did, however, look at the Asgardians with curiosity, and very little leering.

However their expressions soon turned to impressed, as Freyja (Thor) ate an entire ox, eight salmon, three barrels of mead, and the _entire_ wedding cake.

Thrym inquired about this, and the Lokis launched themselves into a tale of Freyja's recent hardships—one of loneliness and heartbreak, of how Freyja had been pining over a man she had loved but who loved her not, and she had ceased eating for days, but now that she was to be happily wed...

Even Thor was so engrossed in the flowery tale he failed to notice the few Lokis that were doing such things as tying shoes together and flicking food at people inconspicuously.

And that there were only twenty-seven.

* * *

At the end of the Lokis' tale, Thrym leapt up.

"Then let us be wed!" he declared. "Somebody fetch the hammer so we can bless our marriage!"

And, not able to wait to kiss his bride, Thrym lifted up Freyja's veil...

His surprise to find the furious face of the God of Thunder staring back at him instead of that of Freyja barely registered however, before Mjolnir smashed into his face.

"Fetched!" an adult Loki smiled, swaggering into the chamber, green eyes glinting. "I have always wanted to do that."

The entire hall leapt to their feet—Jotuns and Asgardian alike.

"Thrym did say no_ Asgardian_ would find the hammer," the Loki continued, grinning ever brighter. "But of course, that doesn't apply to me, now does it?"

"YOU KILLED OUR KING!" a Jotun shouted.

"Hush," another Loki said, getting up to stand by the first. "Did anyone really profit from Thrym's reign?" she gestured outside the hall windows to the desolate realm, the icy ground fracturing apart, the city practically ruins. "Are you really so displeased to be rid of him?"

The Frost Giants looked down, shuffling their feet.

Thor stared open mouthed (not that anyone could tell, since the veil had fallen back into his face. But Loki could hear his gasped breaths.)

"It would, however, be cruel of us to come and just set this realm into more politic turmoil," The first Loki said, inclining her head.

"Jotunheim, we—_I_ think, needs a wise ruler."

A kiddie Loki grabbed one of the Frost Giant's hands, tugging on the woman's hands.

Shocked, she didn't budge.

The Loki pouted, widening his green eyes, and suddenly she found herself being lead to the head of the tables.

"Thrym's daughter?" a Loki inquired, though it wasn't a question.

"I believe you are now Queen of Jotunheim."

* * *

Heimdall stared coldly at them as they appeared on the rainbow bridge, mouth pressed into a disproving line.

"Come now," a teen Loki said, crossing her arms defensively. "I thought I did quite well, considering!"

"Thor's hammer is returned to him, only one Frost Giant was killed, and Jotunhiem now has a competent ruler," another Loki pointed out.

A pair of green eyes glared, voice hissing challengingly. "_Where_ then, is my failure?"

Heimdall's lips twitched. "As I was about to say: not bad."

* * *

"_How did you hold my hammer?!" _

"Finally found your tongue?" a Loki smirked, amused. He straightened the straps on his leather armor.

"HOW?!"

A young Loki turned his back, voice choked with tears. "Do you not believe that some part of me might actually be _worthy?" _

Thor's gaze softened immediately, and he pulled the Loki into his arms, letting him bury his face into the fabric of Thor's glittering gold shoulder.

"Shh, Brother. I am sorry... I did not mean it that way."

"Don't worry though," another Loki snorted, smirk wry. "Once I find a way to rejoin my emotions together into _Loki_, I will no doubt still be unable to lift it."

"Actually..." Thor glanced down at the three Lokis who were hugging him, wrapping their skinny arms as far as they would go around his broad chest. "I wouldn't mind if you stayed like this."

Thor bent down and kissed a Loki on the forehead.

"NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!" another Loki yelled, running out of the room, his voice heading in the direction of the Library. "I WILL FIND A WAY TO FIX IT!"

Thor chuckled, shaking his head. "You sure are a character, Brother."

"Maybe," a Loki acknowledged, raising an eyebrow at the thunderer.

"But have I told you that you look ridiculous in that dress?"

* * *

**I should also probably say that there were a few lines I took almost directly from the book _Odin's Family: Myths of the Vikings, _retold by Neil Philip, on pg. 62, which was:**

"**Thor looked very uncomfortable. He said, 'A joke's a joke, Loki. But no giant would ever be fooled by this.'**

** 'I don't know,' said Loki, 'in a half-light, you look very fetching. I could marry you myself.' And Loki lifted Thor's veil and planted a kiss on his cheek." **

**Which I read, and I was just like 'Aww! I need to write something with that!' And so I did.  
**

**Also the yellow lilies are supposedly unfavorable wedding flowers because they indicate 'falsehood' ;) **

**Anyways, I'd love it if you would let me know what you think! ^.^**


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